Cant. III.
the Faery Queene.
35
Long she thus traueiled through deserts wyde,By which she thought her wandring knight shold pas,Yet neuer shew of liuing wight espyde;Till that at length she found the troden gras,In which the tract of peoples footing was,Vnder the steepe foot of a mountaine hore;The same she followes, till at last she hasA damzell spyde slow footing her before,That on her shoulders sad a pot of water bore.
To whom approching she to her gan call,To weet, if dwelling place were nigh at hand;But the rude wench her answerd nought at all,She could not heare, nor speake, nor vnderstand;Till seeing by her side the Lyon stand,With suddeine feare her pitcher downe she threw,And fled away: for neuer in that landFace of fayre Lady she before did vew,And that dredd Lyons looke her cast in deadly hew.
Full fast she fled, ne euer lookt behynd,As if her life vpon the wager lay,And home she came, whereas her mother blyndSate in eternall night: nought could she say,But suddeine catching hold did her dismayWith quaking hands, and other signes of feare:Who full of ghastly fright and cold affray,Gan shut the dore. By this arriued thereDame Vna, weary Dame, and entrance did requere.
Which when none yielded, her vnruly PageWith his rude clawes the wicket open rent,And let her in; where of his cruell rageNigh dead with feare, and faint astonishment,
She
